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panic button

noun

an alarm button for use in an emergency, as to summon help.

panic button

noun

a button or switch that operates any of various safety devices, for use in an emergency
hit the panic button or press the panic button informal.
to react to a situation by demanding emergency action; become excited; panic

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Word History and Origins

Origin of panic button¹

Allegedly first used in reference to emergency bell systems on World War II bombers such as the B-17 and B-24

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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

push / hit / press the panic button, Informal. to give way to panic in a distressing situation.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Four losses in 19 matches - in a season which has included a title win in Rotterdam - does not suggest the panic button should be pressed yet.

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The water alarm was triggered at 8:16 a.m., and the panic button on the keypad by the front door was activated at 8:55 a.m.

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Mr Kunu told the court that if it had been a real robbery, Mr White would have pressed the panic button or "kicked up a fuss".

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Officials in Mexico have described the system as a "panic button".

From

“The panic button, the stuff with the consulates — it’s all a smokescreen to give the impression of doing something in response to Trump,” said Irineo Mujica, who heads the Pueblo Sin Fronteras rights group.

From

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

panic bolt panic buying

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